But again, this day of grace, and of conversion of sinners, it must be looked upon either as the church is in captivity and persecution, or as she is out. Now, as she is in captivity, so her longest day is usually accompanied with a black and doubtful night of temptation and affliction. Wherefore this day here being spoken of, it is the day of grace that she shall have even when she is absolutely delivered from the rage of the beast, false prophet, and whore. Wherefore he is not content to say, the gates shall not be shut at all by day, but adds withal, 'for there shall be no night there'; as who should say, I know that commonly in the day of the church's affliction she is accompanied with nights as well as days, but it shall not be so here; 'Thy sun shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself; for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended' (Isa 60:20).
Wherefore John, considering this, doth quite exclude the night, saying, 'There shall be no night there.' Indeed after this New Jerusalem hath had her golden day in this world, I say, just towards the ending thereof, she will yet once again be beset with raging Gog and Magog, which enemies will, after the long safety and tranquility of this city, through the instigation of the devil come upon the breadth of the earth, and encamp about this holy city (Eze 28; 29). But behold in the midst of this intention to swallow her up, the Lord rains fire and brimstone from heaven and destroys them all; so that God, I say, though he may bring one only evening upon this holy city after her long peace and rest among the sons of men, yet he shall not bring one night upon her, nor cause a gate thereof to be shut for ever. The sun shall now stand still in the midst of heaven, and this night shall be thus prevented by this marvellous judgment of God (Josh 10). As another prophet saith, 'At evening time it shall be light' (Zech 14:7). That is, though her enemies will at last still make, through their enmity, one only attempt to swallow up all in everlasting oblivion, yet they themselves shall fall down dead upon the mountains of Israel, and be a prey to this Jerusalem. Thus there will be only day accompanying the inhabitants of this city, 'For there shall be no night there.'
[The glory and honour of the nations brought into it.]
Ver. 26. 'And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.' This, as I said before, is to show us how heartily, and how unfeignedly, both the nations and their kings shall now come over to New Jerusalem. They come hand in hand, not the people without their prince, nor the prince without his people, though it will, and must be so, in the times of persecution; but now, together 'they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations to it.'
Again, I told you before that the Jews shall at this day be converted to the Christian faith, and shall have a great name and much of heaven upon them in this city. For, indeed, they are the first-born, the natural branches, and the like. Now when he saith, they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations to it, I cannot think that by this should we understand only, or yet principally, the outward pomp and treasure of the world, but that rather by honour and glory we are here to understand the heavenly treasure and glory that the saints shall continually pour forth into one another's bosoms in this city. In this city, I say, for at this day, as I have formerly showed you, there will be found no treasure any where but at Jerusalem; every saint shall be here, every grace shall be here, the precious stones of the sanctuary, the precious sons of Zion shall not then, as now, lie scattered, some in the world, and some in mistress Babylon's lap; neither shall any thing pertaining to the church's privileges be found in her at all for ever. There shall be heard no more at all in her any harpers, trumpeters, pipers, or any other heavenly music in her; neither shall there be any more the sound of a millstone to grind us bread, nor the light of a candle to guide us in the house, nor yet the voice of the bridegroom, Christ, nor of the bride his wife, to tempt or allure any that are seeking the way of life, to stay with her (Rev 18:22,23). All these things shall be brought to Jerusalem (2 Chron 36:7). Christians, you must understand that there is a time when all the treasures of the church are to be found in Babylon, as in the days of old; but at this day, when this city is built, not any of them shall be found there, but all shall be brought and delivered up to Jerusalem again, as was also foreshown in the type; and all places shall be void of the treasure of heaven, but Jerusalem (Ezra 6:1-6; 7:13-16).
Wherefore by the glory and honour of the nations in this place, I understand that all the treasures of the church, and all the graces that at this day lie scattered here and there, some in one place and some in another, they shall be found no where at that day but in this city, in the church that walks according to rule. Now the reasons why I take this honour and glory to be meant of these things are-
First. Because thus it was in the time of the building of Jerusalem after the captivity, the treasure of the Jews, which was become the treasures of the provinces of Babylon, was again restored and brought to Jerusalem, as you may see by the scriptures now cited.
Second. Because I find indeed, that the milk and honey of the land of Canaan-which are, in our gospel language, the gifts, graces, and treasures of the church-it is called, 'The glory of all lands' (Eze 20:6). Now, I say, seeing the milk and honey, which are the comforts of the church and her treasure, is called 'The glory of all lands,' I take glory and honour in this place to signify the same thing also (Cant 4:11).
Third. Because also I find, by comparing the prophets, that the Christian's glory and honour lieth mostly, even principally, in heavenly and spiritual things; as in faith, love, experience of God, of grace, of Christ, and spiritual life. I read that, at the building of this city, the Jews and Gentiles shall meet together, and that at that day they shall mutually be partakers of each other's glory. The Gentiles 'shall milk out, and be delighted in the abundance of the glory' of the Jews: and the glory of the Gentiles shall be again extended unto the Jews like a mighty flowing stream (Isa 66:10-13). But I say that this glory and honour should consist in outward things, or that the glory that is merely carnal should be principally here intended, I confess it grates too near the ground for me to believe or rejoice in it. Alas, I find that those souls that have not now the tenth part of the spirit and life of heavenly things that shall then be poured forth; I say, I find that these are trampling on the world, and disdain the thoughts of being taken with its glory. Wherefore much less will it be esteemed in that day, when the glory and goodness of God shall in that manner break forth. Again, can it be imagined that the chief of the glory that the Gentiles should bring to the Jews after a sixteen hundred years warming in the bosom of Christ; I say, is it imaginable that the great crop of all they have reaped should consist in a little outward trumpery? Or if it should, would it be a suitable medicine in the least to present to the eyes of a broken and wounded people, as the Jews will be at that day? Or if they glory that the Gentiles at that day shall suck from the Jews were such as this, would it at all be as life from the dead to them in a gospel sense. The church of the Gentiles shall be a wall to the Jews at their return; but such a wall as will chiefly consist in spiritual and heavenly safeguard, and in outward, because of that (Rom 11:13-15). I am a wall, saith she, and my breasts are towers, on which the Jews will build upon her a palace of silver (Cant 8:8-10). But must this wall, I say, consist chiefly in outward glory, in the glory of earthly things? or must this silver palace be of that nature either? No verily, but when God hath built the city Jerusalem, and put his church into such a state, that upon all her glory shall be a defence of heaven, then shall the Jews, by their coming into this city, build, by their experience, a palace for spiritual and heavenly pleasure, to solace and comfort their brethren withal. In a word, then, by glory and honour in this place, we are chiefly to understand the spiritual and heavenly things of this city, which, in the times of the reign of Antichrist, have lain, some among the potsherds of the earth, some again under the stairs, some under this abuse, and some under that (Psa 61:3; Cant 2:14). All which shall be brought by the souls that shall be converted, forthwith to this city, the church, where will be the treasury of God, into which every one at that day shall throw in of their abundance; but as for the glory of the world, the saints shall be above it, it shall be with them as silver and wood was in the days of Solomon, even as little worth as the stones in the street in their account (Isa 27:13; 1 Kings 10:21).
[None but visible saints shall enter.]